The Greatest Distance
by Annika Richards
Summary: After her father's death, her mother is not able to cope, leaving 11 year old Lillian on her own. She is sent to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, as she is 11 and born to a witch and wizard. Lillian learns what REAL magic is, learning how to hope things will get better. Follow Lillian on her quest to put behind her the life of death and misery, becoming whole once more.
1. Great Sorrow

**Hello, everyone! Thanks for the reviews on my other books! I really appreciate the fact that you guys seem to be trying to be polite. Halloween is tomorrow, so for those of you who are going trick-or-treating, I wish you the best of luck. I've been working very hard on lengthening my chapters. My longest one is now 1,133 words! Thanks for supporting me, as I am a young writer and still learning. It's difficult to please everyone, so please stay with me and be considerate. I don't think I'll change the whole plot of a story because one reviewer said to. As long as you guys keep supporting me, I'll keep writing. **

**I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters; J.K. Rowling does. I wish I did, though... ;)**

* * *

She woke up with a start, relaxing once she heard the raspy sound of her father's breathing from the other room. She dreaded every morning, that it would be the day. Her father had been ill for a few months now, and even after numerous trips to St. Mungos and various Muggle hospitals, her father was still dreadfully sick. Every part of her wanted to find a cure to his ailment, but after the first month, it proved impossible. Whenever she looked at her father, she wanted to die then and there. His eyes were sunken in, their emerald green irises prominent against the chalky white of his face. His raspy breaths shook her even more than his appearance. he was in so much pain that Lillian wanted to help him, but could in no way do such.

Her mother wasn't doing so well either, depression driving her mad. The obvious fate of her husband had taken a toll on her beautiful features. Her once flawless skin was plagued with wrinkles, too many for her age. Circles underneath her bright, blue eyes showed of many sleepless nights. Her once blond hair lay dark and stringy down her back, rid of all the shine and luster it had.

11 year old Lillian, though tired and sad, wasn't affected physically by the sudden illness that plagued her father. She knew that his time to die would come, and there was no way to help relieve his pain. She accepted this fact, and embraced it with open arms, for she was not about to try and decide when his time to die would come.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she crept out of bed to make breakfast, otherwise, her mother and father would not eat; neither of them were capable of serving a meal. Toast, she though, would be a good source of fiber, along with the protein from scrambled eggs. Careful not to wake her parents with the pop of the toaster, she proceeded to slather the slices in grape jelly and peanut butter, her mother's favorite. Grabbing a tray from the cupboard, she climbed the stairs to her parent's bedroom.

The room was quiet accept for some sniffling, which she though was strange. She slowly opened the door the the bedroom, balancing the tray on her left arm. Her mother lay weeping by the body of her father, his illness taken its toll. The raspy breathing was absent, his lungs lacking the shaky up and down movement they had. His pale skin, cold to the touch. Her dear father would rest in peace at last. Lillian placed the tray on the nightstand, sitting down next to her mother, fighting the tears that came to her eyes. She slowly rubbed her mother's back until her sorrowful sobs ceased.


	2. The Beginning of The Beginning

**I'm so proud! I'm up to 3 reviews now! Keep it up! I have a friend who has over 50 reviews on her book. I'm sooooo jealous! Let's see if we can beat her! Sorry this chapter is so short; Its more of an introduction I think. Enjoy!**

* * *

The days after that were painful for Lillian. Every day she tried to comfort her mother, but alas, she did not prevail. It felt like as the days went on, her mother lost a small part of herself, bit by bit. She became more distant, drawn further, and further away from the living by the death of her father. When finally, depression consumed her mother, taking every bit of her willpower away.

Her mother would not eat or drink, refusing to talk to anyone or get help. Lillian couldn't do anything to help her. Her mother was just too far gone. This went on for a few months, until her mother was nothing but skin and bones, with sunken in eyes and ghostly gray skin. That is when, to her despair, her mother took her last breath, leaving Lillian alone in the world to care for herself. This is also when the readers actually start to read. This is the beginning of the beginning. The kickoff. This is the start of Lillian's story.


	3. The Greatest Distance

Lillian was alone now. She had no relatives close by, except for Harry Potter, that is. He wasn't even considered family, just a close family friend. Her mother, Cho Chang, had dated him before the Battle of Hogwarts. Hopefully, she begged, Harry would take her in. She was eleven, so she would be going to Hogwarts very shortly. There was no way she was going to get the things she needed from Diagon Alley alone.   


She called the Potter household, her voice echoing through the house. "Hello? This is Lillian, Cho Chang's daughter."

"Oh! Hello, Lillian! How's your father? I heard he was ill." A feminine voice said from the end of the line. She had only talked to Ginny Potter once before, so Lillian guessed it was her. She bit her lip.

"My father passed away a few months ago."

"Oh, dear. I'm dreadfully sorry for your loss. I liked your father. He was a good man. How is your mother dealing with all this?" Lillian sighed.

"My mother passed away last week." She heard a gasp from the other line.

"Oh, you poor dear! Where are you now?" Ginny exclaimed.

"At home. Alone." Lillian replied. She wasn't used to the house being so quiet.

"I'll send Harry to pick you up. You can stay with us." Ginny said, hanging up the phone. Lillian gently placed the phone on the table and climbed the two flights of stairs to her bedroom, where she heaved a very large suitcase off of a shelf in her closet, placing it in the middle of the room. She paced the room for a few minutes, finally deciding on bringing a few pairs of pants, a couple of t-shirts, sweatshirts, socks, undergarments, and a pair of sandals, sneakers, and high heels. After shoving what she could of each garment into her suitcase, she looked around her richly furnished room, trying to decide what other items should accompany her to the Potters' house.

She eventually chose to pack a picture of her parents on their wedding day, a Quidditch World Cup poster, and a necklace that was her mother's. In one swift move, Lillian zipped the suitcase and picked it up, clunking down the stairs to the front door, careful not to make any marks on the tile. Once she reached the entryway, she stopped and turned around. Sitting on the bulging suitcase, she inspected every inch of the house, trying to brand it into her memory, as this would be the last time she walked the halls of the house she grew up in. Suddenly, she heard a light tap on the door. Peering through the peep hole, she saw Harry Potter standing on the doormat, looking quite uncomfortable. Lillian grabbed her suitcase and opened the door for him, smiling as pleasantly as she could. Harry smiled back.

"Hello, you must be Lillian!" He said in a warm Brittish accent. Lillian wasn't accustomed to a British accent; her mother was born in Scotland.

"Hi." She said, suddenly shy. It was very strange talking to her mother's ex-boyfriend from years ago. On top of that, Harry Potter was famous. He had destroyed the Dark Lord, Lord Voldemort, just over thirteen years ago. Harry seemed to feel as awkward as she did; he was twiddling his thumbs. Lillian looked around the house one more time before stepping out with her suitcase and closing the door behind her.

"You ready to go?" Harry asked, holding out his hand. She took it and nodded. This was only the start of the greatest distance she would cover.


	4. New Life

**Hey, guys! I would like to thank you guys for the reviews! They have been by far the best I've gotten! I would also like to remind those of you who have not reviewed yet to review and to follow my stories, as well as Snickers and Bubbles and Safarilover1. Happy Holidays!**

* * *

Lillian stumbled as they landed, her stomach lurching, the ground hurtling towards her. Someone gripped her arm firmly, pulling her upright. Looking up, she saw Harry looking at her, sympathetically.

"Your first time?" Lillian nodded, giving him a small smile. She didn't remember ever traveling far with her parents, definitely not by apparation. Picking her bags up, Harry lead her inside the house. " Ginny! Lillian's here!" He called up the long flight of stairs, and Ginny Potter came racing down, red hair flowing behind her in curtains, her green eyes alive with excitement.

" Hi! I can't believe you can stay with us!" She exclaimed like a child who was excited for Christmas, yet her eyes glistened with unshed tears, no doubt seeing Lillian's mother's face when looking at her.

"Hi." She replied, shyly, letting Ginny bring her into a crushing embrace.

" Let me show you your room. This is my parents house, but we're living here for now. Everyone else moved out." She said, taking the bags from Harry, who stifled a laugh.

" We haven't had any kids around here for a while." He explained. Lillian nodded in understanding, following Ginny up the stairs and into a small bedroom.

On the far side of the room, there was a window that overlooked a field full of flowers, turning golden in the last light of day. The curtains around the window were a pale gold, embroidered in red velvet. The bed was a large fourposter, with a satiny, red bedspread. The large bed left little room for anything else in the room, but Lillian only brought enough clothes for a year at Hogwarts, so there would be enough room. Ginny placed the Bags on the bed and started to leave the room, but Lillian took her hand and stopped her.

" Mrs. Potter, thanks for letting me live here for now."

Ginny grinned. " You can live here for the rest of your life if you want."

"Really?" Lillian asked, her eyes going wide. She couldn't believe she found a permanent place to live. " I'll make myself useful! I promise."

" Is that how your parents treated you? As their maid?" Ginny said, suddenly angry. Lillian was shocked.

"Of course not! After my father became ill, my mother fell apart! She couldn't even feed herself!" She exclaimed. " I had to take care of them!" A single tear ran down her cheek. She had tried to stay away from that topic, afraid she would break like her mother. Why did Ginny think that she had been treated like a maid? Ginny walked over to Lillian and hugged her tightly.

" I'm so sorry." She whispered, her eyes glistening. She wiped the tears from Lillian's face in one smooth motion. " I'm so, so, sorry."

"It's alright." She sniffed and Ginny handed her a tissue.

"Call if you need anything. Dinner will be at six." Lillian wiped her eyes and started to unpack her bags, Ginny leaving the room.

The first item she unpacked, was a picture of her parents. The looked young and happy, a muggle and a witch, sitting on a bench in the park near their house. She put it down on the side table, right next to her parents' wedding rings, which she took before she left. Then, she unpacked what little clothes she brought and a small sack of galleons, putting them in the drawers of the small mahogany looked in the mirror by the dresser, now finished packing, and inspected her reflection. She looked like her mother, except the fact that her hair was brown, not black. Her eyes were the same chocolate brown as her mother's. Grabbing a hair tie, she swept her hair into a ponytail and headed downstairs, just in time for dinner.

Ginny's mother, Mrs. Weasley, made stew for dinner, with carrots and potatoes. Lillian's mouth watered at the taste of something other than macaroni and cheese or eggs and bacon. Dessert was even better. Lillian rarely ever had dessert, but tonight she got a treat; strawberry tart. After enjoying a quiet meal that filled her belly for once, Lillian sat in the living room with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, and Harry and Ginny Potter.

" We'll take you to Diagon Alley tomorrow, because the train leaves next week. We'll also have Ron and Hermione take you to the platform, because I have to clean the house and Harry has to go to work at the Ministry." Ginny started, Harry clasping his hand around hers. Lillian nodded.

" Okay. I have about 200 galleons, so I should be fine." Harry nodded.

" Okay. We have to tell McGonagall that you changed addresses, because she'll send the letter to the wrong one." Harry said, getting up. Lillian pulled out a piece of golden paper.

" I have it right here."

" Oh. That makes things easier. Why don't you run along to bed, so you can wake up nice and early in the morning." He replied, leading her up the stairs and into her room.

" Goodnight." She said.

" Goodnight." He kissed her forehead lightly, turning out the light. This was the first time she slept peacefully in months.


End file.
